June 30, 2015

Potential Phillies manager? Upper Darby native Mike Scioscia can opt out of contract at season's end

Things are not going to great in Anaheim, home to the Los Angeles Angels. The players, coaching staff, and front office are in the midst of a battle over communicating scouting reports. The end result could mean that highly-respected manager Mike Scioscia could end up looking for a new team at season's end, the same season in which the Phillies will be looking.

Emotions simmered in a series of meetings over the weekend when Dipoto expressed frustration with the coaches’ failure to convey scouting information to the players, sources said. At least one coach responded heatedly to Dipoto and first baseman Albert Pujols issued a pointed rebuttal to his GM, sources said.

The intervention of Dipoto in such a forceful manner is uncommon even in an era when GMs are exerting more authority over in-game strategy. It also comes at a time when Scioscia, the longest-tenured manager in baseball, could choose to make the current season his final one with the Angels.

So the logical conclusion, then, is that Scioscia could take advantage of a clause in his contract that would enable him to opt out of the remaining three years after the 2015 season.

Rosenthal points out that Scioscia is a Philadelphia-area native, and the Phillies could be interested in Scioscia. But would Scioscia want to come to a team who is undergoing a rebuild? Scioscia attended Springfield High School in Delaware County and was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first round of the 1976 draft. Would coming home be enough to convince Scioscia to return to the area?

Realistically, Scioscia is probably a little bit too advanced for what the Phillies need right now. The next Phillies manager probably needs to be young and patient. Think Terry Francona joining the Phillies in 1997; the new manager likely will in turn get to learn the game. After leaving Philadelphia with a less-than-stellar start, Francona developed into one of the most-respected managers in the game.

Scioscia is on that level right now and may not want to join a rebuilding team.